Dornier Do 217 J Nachtjäger -Nachtjagd ace Paul Zorner memoir "Nächte im Bomberstrom" (296 Verlag)

Do 217 J equipped with FuG 212 Lichtenstein BC antenna array deployed in the Nachtagd role on Sicily 1942/43 with Englandblitz Wappen on offer here

Leading Nachtjagd ace Paul Zorner in his memoir "Nächte im Bomberstrom" (296 Verlag)  has some choice words for the Dornier Do 217 he flew in NJG 3 -  " ein Klotz " being one of the more polite terms he employs ( a 'brick' ). As he points out his loaded and tanked up Do 217 'fighter' weighed a "large truck heavier" than a fully loaded Junkers Ju 88 and climbed at all of 6 metres/second (IIRC) - at least half the rate of the Ju 88. He recalls a combat with an RAF Wellington during which he almost got shot down. After struggling home he went straight to his Kommandeur to tell him that he would never fly the 'old cow' in combat again!  According to Gebhard Aders, Dornier night-fighters achieved their last successes during August and October 1943 when they were - believe it or not - deployed on day light operations against USAAF B-17 bombers. Their fixed armament of 4 x MG151/20 cannon and 4 x MG17 machine guns furnished a certain amount of firepower in frontal attacks - if it could be brought to bear...

Me 109 Friedrichs of I./JG 52, Ofw. Oskar Wunder 2. Staffel, "gelbe 5", "schwarze 8" - Daily Luftwaffe Ebay photo find

Me 109 F on the strength of 3./JG 52 "gelbe 5" crash landed by Ofw. Walter Mackens in Nowy-Grinew in early July 1942. According to the seller's caption, Mackens was KIA on 1 June 1944 while serving in the West with JG 300 and had returned at least ten victories.

"..Me 109 F, 2./JG 52 "schwarze 8" mit 12 Luftsiegen am Seitenruder, Grakowo, Rußland Juni 1942.."

'Black 8' Friedrich F-4,  note the armoured windshield. The rudder features twelve victory markings, Grakowo, Russia, June 1942. See page 154 of Bernd Barbas history of I. Gruppe JG 52. On the left in long trousers is Ofw. Oskar Wunder of 2. Staffel who was KIA in 'Black 8' on 24 June 1942. He had achieved 12 victories, a total he had reached by the end of May 1942.


Bottom; 'Black 7' and 'Black 6', this latter image printed back to front. Michael Meyer Ebay sales

Bf 110 E/F/G detail views NJG - Daily Ebay Luftwaffe photo find

Me 110 C/D/E/F "3C+ES" of 7./NJG 4 1942/43 seen alongside other NJG 4 machines. Given the different sub-types on view these aircraft are almost certainly 'school' training machines  - ie on the strength of a Nachtjagdschule. Note the Abgasflammenvernichter (exhaust flame dampers) with which the photograher's aircraft is evidently equipped, making it most probably an 'F' or 'G' variant. The second image depicts a G-2 of III./ NJG 4 undergoing engine maintenance. The third image below is a previously seen view of an 'E' sub-type (note the nose air intake) of I./NJG 1 probably in Holland (Arnhem/Deelen), fitted with the Dachshund Dackelbauch belly 1200 litre auxiliary fuel tank.
These views courtesy Michael Meyer's Ebay sales

Bottom; a selection of further recent and/or current images available at ebay.de (search me 110)

http://www.ebay.de/itm/Foto-Militar-Flugzeug-Me-110-mit-MG-und-Tarnanstrich-im-2-WK-/230910245710?pt=Militaria&hash=item35c352bb4e#ht_481wt_1160

Oblt. Rudolf Busch Gkr. I./ JG 51, Hans Philipp I./ JG 54, Oblt. Erich Hohagen 4./JG 51, Daily Luftwaffe Ebay photo find, Jagdflieger

A selection of nice views of I./JG 54 Friedrichs taken during the winter of 1942 showing to advantage the Staffel and Gruppe Wappen currently on offer from arte-photographica including this photo of Hans Philipp's F-2

More on Hans Philipp on this blog
http://falkeeins.blogspot.co.uk/2012/11/hans-philipp-der-beste-jagdflieger.html

Oberleutnant Rudolf Busch (40 victories, DKiG)  Gkr. I./ JG 51,  KIA on 17 January 1943

http://www.ebay.de/itm/Foto-LW-Luftwaffe-ME-109-I-J-G-51-Jagdflieger-Rudolf-Busch-Staffelwappen-/310562430616?pt=Militaria&hash=item484ef69e98#ht_2582wt_1202

  Oblt. Erich Hohagen climbs from the cockpit of a 4./JG 51 Emil probably during the summer of 1940. Hohagen was awarded the Ritterkreuz on 6 October 1940 and achieved a total of 56 victories while sustaining serious injury on a number of occasions. By war's end he had achieved the rank of Major flying the Me 262 Turbo with Galland's JV 44, returning one victory...

http://www.ebay.de/itm/Foto-me-109-jg51-jagdflieger-erich-hohagen-/350686067941?pt=Militaria&hash=item51a684bce5#ht_500wt_1157

http://www.ebay.de/itm/Foto-Negativ-Jagd-Flugzeug-Me-109-G-mit-Pick-As-Wappen-im-2-WK-/290837167547?pt=Militaria&hash=item43b73efdbb#ht_481wt_1160

http://www.ebay.de/itm/Foto-LW-Luftwaffe-ME-109-f-Jagdflugzeug-Langenau-bei-BRESLAU-/310561927378?pt=Militaria&hash=item484eeef0d2#ht_500wt_924

JG 26 Emil - Daily ebay Luftwaffe photo find

Selection of Bf 109 photos currently on offer on Ebay.de, including this nice Emil of  5./ JG 26  with Rabe (raven)  emblem, JG 52 Emil in Holland and Friedrichs of JG 51 pictured in the Demyansk Kessel...

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Orig-Top-Foto-Flugzeug-Me-109-JG-26-2-Staffelabzeichen-Rabe-Tarnung-Camo-/261151822273?ssPageName=ADME:B:SS:GB:1123

http://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/banksy-art/m.html?item=300842897711&ssPageName=ADME%3AB%3ASS%3AGB%3A1123&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2562

Focke Wulf 190 in Sicily, Rommel's He 111 in Rome-Ciampino- Daily Luftwaffe Ebay photo find

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/FOTO-FLUGZEUG-Messerschmitt-Me109-TARN-BEMALUNG-STAFFELWAPPEN-JG-3-/370727903343?ssPageName=ADME:B:SS:GB:1123

Ju 88 D "Vi+N." most probably on the strength of 4.(F)/122 seen at Rome Ciampino-Nord during 1943

http://www.ebay.de/itm/Foto-Luftwaffe-Flugzeug-Ju-88-D-Vi-N-4-F-122-Rom-Ciampino-Nord-1943-Italien-/380549114588?pt=Militaria&hash=item589a7eaadc#ht_500wt_949

http://www.ebay.de/itm/Foto-Ju-88-Kampf-Flugzeug-mit-Wappen-2-F-Aufkl-Gr-123-im-2-WK-/290837039175?pt=Militaria&hash=item43b73d0847&autorefresh=true#ht_500wt_949

http://www.ebay.de/itm/Foto-Flugzeug-JU87-Stuka-Legion-Condor-original-3-/261151264440?pt=Militaria&hash=item3ccdd40eb8#ht_836wt_1026

Latest Heiko Fuchs Ebay offers include these images below - inscription on the reverse reads " Fw 190 on Sicily, 1943". According to the seller this Fw 190 is a " Jagdbomber mit Tarnanstrich für Nachteinsätze" -a Jabo fighter bomber finished in a camo scheme for night operations....the black distemper obscuring both national insiginia and Staffelkennzeichen rather recalls the finish given to Fw 190s of the SKG that operated night sorties over the UK during April 1943  - the remnants of that unit were in fact posted to Sicily in advance of the Allied invasion which took place in the summer of 1943...

Review of Morten Jessen and Andrew Arthy's "Fw 190 in the battle for Sicily"
http://falkeeins.blogspot.co.uk/2010/10/focke-wulf-190-in-battle-for-sicily.html

Luftwaffe He 111 H assigned to GenOberst Erwin Rommel (seen in front of the aircraft). In the background a Savoia Marchetti SM 82, photo taken at Ciampino-Nord, 1943 from Michael Meyer's sales

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This machine does not appear to be a previously seen He 111 used by Rommel -  Heinkel He 111 (VG+ES) WNr. 4085,  "VG+ES" was a fully equipped H-4 variant  - armed with five MG 15 and one MG 17, the capacity to load 1,000 kg of bombs internally and another 1,000 kg under the wings, although the the sub-type and WNr are contentious..

Below;  Dornier Do 215 B, personal transport of  the Oberbefehlhaber Süd later Südwest, GFM Albert Kesselring, photographed at Rome Ciampino-Nord during 1943...

Ju 52/3m of III./KGrzbV 1 with bear emblem photographed at Rome Ciampino-Nord during 1943. On the left, engine technician Günther Bruns of the 7 Werkstattzug der Fliegerhorstergänzungsgruppe Kommandantur Afrika seen maintaining the starboard BMW 132 engine.

Me 110 G-2 II./ZG 1 August/September 1943

Reproduced here courtesy Michael Meyer's Ebay sales, his latest selection includes some interesting views of Me 110 G-2 twins belonging to II./ZG 1 seen running up their engines some time during August/September 1943 when the Gruppe was based on the French Atlantic coast at Brest. Sorties were flown out over the Bay of Biscay. On 8 October 1943 machines from II./ZG 1 were caught by Spitfires some 200 km north-west of Brest and no fewer than six Bf 110s were shot down. Staffelkapitän of 6./ZG 1 during this period and then Gkr. II./ ZG 1 from October 1943 was RK holder Oblt. Egon Albrecht. Albrecht was KIA less than a year later, also in France, as Gkr. of the short-lived III./ JG 76, a unit that was established during May 1944 by the expedient of retraining Bf 110 pilots on the Bf 109..

Below; Me 110 G-2 of 4./ZG 1 most probably photographed in Trapani, Sicily during May 1943. Left of the picture is the BF Uffz. Januk, a member of Staffelkapitän Oblt Hubertus Huy's crew. The lower view is a rare pic of 5./ZG 1  Staffelkapitän Hptm. Rudi Wangner also seen on Sicily during spring 1943. Wangner was KIA on 27 June 1944 in the vicinity of Budapest..